Hi all,
I'm fairly new to this. However, I'm improving. My questions are as follows:

Assume that you extract all possible info from the clues and completely use the grid to generate all possible data, then recheck any logical clues to find more data, etc.

1. Should you ever get to a point where you can only proceed by randomly choosing 1 of 2 possibilities for a given argument and playing it out to a successful conclusion or a logical contradiction and then going back to the other possibility to complete the puzzle?

2. If the answer to the first question is no, does that mean that I missed something in the clues and grid manipulations, and if so, what might be some subtle errors one might expect to see?

I would think that following up on a guess could work. However, they MUST give you enough information to solve the puzzle. The process of elimination should work sooner or later, but I have no idea how I'd be able to keep track of what I did.

I would recommend that you try easier puzzles until you get the hang of things. To find the easier puzzles, I have been noting the percentage of players that have completed a puzzle while it loads. If it's lower than say 65%, hit "new game" again until you get one with 65% or more finishers on it.
They tend to be the 4x4 puzzles. I've had one 5x5. I've also been reading the forums to pick up helpful tips.

I think I know what you are talking about. Are you getting to a situation where you are down to, for example, "John" or "Bruce", "Christmas" or "Thanksgiving", and "Pine" or "Spruce" but have no idea which one went "4th" or "6th"? If that happens, most of the time there is a hint that say something to the effect of "The person who bought the Pine tree went before the person who went home for Christmas." Look for a hint with wording such as that, or a hint that uses the values that cross in the center section of boxes.

Answer #1: no, that is a bad idea because then you most likly get it wrong and you have to restart the puzzle. Answer #2: look for 4 x's in a row and then mark the last non filled box with a O. Also you need to bring info from one side to the other.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcuser

Hi all,
I'm fairly new to this. However, I'm improving. My questions are as follows:

Assume that you extract all possible info from the clues and completely use the grid to generate all possible data, then recheck any logical clues to find more data, etc.

1. Should you ever get to a point where you can only proceed by randomly choosing 1 of 2 possibilities for a given argument and playing it out to a successful conclusion or a logical contradiction and then going back to the other possibility to complete the puzzle?

2. If the answer to the first question is no, does that mean that I missed something in the clues and grid manipulations, and if so, what might be some subtle errors one might expect to see?

So far, I've never come across a puzzle that doesn't give enough info to finish the puzzle, and I've been doing this for a while. Sometimes the answers are in the grid, not in the clues. Sometimes making sure all your X's are filled in and looking for 4 X's in a row can help find the answer. Make sure you cross-reference all your completed answers, too, if you're really stuck.

When you're looking at the clues, there are some things to check for. We get really used to seeing that Adam is after Samantha, but sometimes it will say Adam is THE DAY after Samantha. If you're going quickly through the clues, it's also easy to mistake IS NOT for IS, and the other way around.

It should always be solvable with the clues and the grid unless you did something worng. On the hardest ones I actually have to go back to the "The 5 people were" clue and check each category to see if I can figure out which one is which. Don't know if that makes sense. I always start with this clude first when solving and eliminate the combinations before adding other clues. It's easier to see if I forgot one that way.

I would guess (haha) that there will always be enough information to solve the puzzle without guessing. However, I am trying to get good enough to compete with some of the amazing players out there. So when I get a puzzle that doesn't immediately work itself out, I find that it is usually faster to punch in one or two guessed variations than to work out what I may have missed. I know that isn't super helpful, but it's something to consider.

Thanks Breanne. I've learned some things since I made the original post. I believe that the clues and grid always give enough information to solve the puzzle. However, I haven't quite figured some of them out yet. As to guessing, I choose a guess where there are only 2 possibilities. That way, you have a 50% chance of being right or wrong. Also, if you have a clue where one 50% shot yields 2 absolute answers, use that to maximize your options. Lastly, do you have any idea how long it takes to get good at these. I only began on November 8, 2009... I'd never done a logic puzzle before then.
Thanks, Pcuser